Black Stone Tablet

"More than two years ago, a stone tablet appeared out of nowhere on the Eighth Level of the Gate of Purgatory, radiating a peculiar power of will. Anyone who gets close to it will be strongly impacted by the will. Therefore, it has always been used by everyone to temper their will."

"Later we also discovered that under the pressure of strong willpower, our cultivation becomes more focused, and breakthroughs in cultivation become easier. This is why, in the past two years, the strength of all the prisoners on the Eighth Level has been greatly improved."

Seeing the puzzled look on Gu Ding's face, Eric explained.

"Strengthening willpower, that sounds interesting." Gu Ding's eyes lit up; he had never experienced the tempering of willpower before.

"I noticed that Black Stone Tablet as soon as I entered this level. It should be the key to our escape from the Gate of Purgatory." The Sea Emperor had also discovered the Black Stone Tablet that Eric had mentioned long ago.

"This should be it." Although Angorde had been vague about the treasure that could help him escape from prison, the fact that it suddenly appeared out of nowhere more than two years ago was enough for Gu Ding to confirm that this Black Stone Tablet was the thing Angorde was talking about that could help him escape from prison.

"Can just anyone approach that stone tablet?" Gu Ding planned to go and check it out as soon as things at the arena were over.

"That's right. The warden and the three Order Keeper Leader said there are no restrictions, and anyone can cultivate nearby. If you are strong enough, you can even take that stone tablet." Eric nodded.

"Thank you for telling me all this." Gu Ding had gotten the answer he wanted. He wasn't going to waste any more words. "Our battle can continue!"

Eric could clearly tell from the aura emanating from Gu Ding, in Combat Strength, he was no match for Gu Ding. But he still wanted to test just how powerful Gu Ding truly was.

With a swift movement, he appeared directly behind Gu Ding, delivering a powerful elbow strike aimed straight for Gu Ding's back.

Gu Ding shifted his stance, twisted his body, and swung out one hand, catching the opponent's elbow strike firmly in his palm. Almost simultaneously, his five fingers suddenly exerted force.

Eric's right elbow completely disintegrated, turning into energy fragments that scattered into the air, and his body was immediately blasted backward.

"How is this possible? Your physical strength actually surpasses mine!" Eric's face was filled with disbelief. He wasn't surprised that Gu Ding was Combat Strength than him, but what astonished him was the terrifying physical strength of Gu Ding as well. "With your cultivation level, how could you possibly raise your physical strength to this level?! Is your physical strength not limited by your cultivation level?"

"My actual physical strength is only at the level of First Sequence true god. The reason I'm stronger than you is because my divine abilities have the effect of amplifying physical strength," Gu Ding explained with a smile.

"I...I concede..." Seeing Gu Ding shatter Eric's arm with a single blow, the other challenger who was still standing made an extremely wise choice.

His reason for making this decision was that he had fought Eric many times before, but each time he had been utterly humiliated. Now, seeing Eric being almost completely crushed by Gu Ding, he felt there was no need to fight Gu Ding anymore. He couldn't even beat Eric, let alone Gu Ding.

After that person conceded defeat, only Gu Ding and Eric remained standing on the ring.

Seeing Gu Ding looking at him, Eric shook his head. "Although I know you are stronger than me, I will not admit defeat so easily. I want to see just how strong you really are."

As he spoke, Eric's arm grew back, and he merely swung it a couple of times. After adjusting for a moment, he charged at Gu Ding again and launched his attack.

"Boom!"

With just one punch, Eric's body flew backward, landing face-first on the ring's protective shield. He then slowly slid down, unconscious.

The referee examined the wound on his chest, which was healing slowly, and knowing that he was unlikely to die, he announced, "Gu Ding wins!"

Even the strongest opponent, Eric, was easily defeated by Gu Ding, making Gu Ding's subsequent battles much easier as he won one after another. It wasn't until late at night that all the challenges were completed.

At this point, his strength was finally recognized by the prisoners on the Eighth Level of the Gate of Purgatory, and even the Order Keeper began to look at him with new respect. In just over two years, Gu Ding's progress had been truly terrifying.

After leaving the arena, Gu Ding glanced at the location of the stone tablet from afar, but did not go there directly. Instead, he returned to his room.

After a day of fighting, Gu Ding was no longer at his peak. Obtaining that stone tablet would be extremely difficult, so Gu Ding decided to wait until the next morning to recover and then give it his all.

After sleeping for more than ten hours, Gu Ding was finally awakened by the Sea Emperor.

"Let's test how close you can get today, and then I can roughly calculate the time it will take you to obtain this stone tablet based on your cultivation speed." The Sea Emperor needed Gu Ding to test it himself before he could make an accurate judgment. After all, the two of them only had a little over three months left, and it would be a lie to say they weren't anxious.

"There are still more than three months left, it should be enough time," Gu Ding remained optimistic.

After breakfast, Gu Ding calmly walked towards the location of the Black Stone Tablet. He knew very well that the more urgent the situation, the less he could afford to be impatient; the more impatient he was, the more likely he was to make a mistake. Therefore, he maintained his most comfortable pace, allowing him to maximize his abilities.

The area where the Black Stone Tablet is located is a huge square, crowded with people, most of whom are sitting cross-legged, though some are in strange poses.

Gu Ding could roughly tell that these people were using the willpower of that stone tablet to improve their cultivation.

The people were arranged at varying distances, with the furthest being over a hundred meters away and the closest being about thirty meters from the stone tablet.

Gu Ding also sensed that powerful willpower from afar. When he thought that the stone tablet was related to the prison break, Gu Ding clenched his fist and then walked solemnly towards the location of the Black Stone Tablet step by step.

300 meters

200 meters

100 meters

Eighty meters

Fifty meters

Thirty meters

Gu Ding approached the Black Stone Tablet by step, even entering an area within thirty meters of it. But every step he took from then on was extremely difficult.

Twenty-nine meters, twenty-eight meters... twenty-one meters, twenty meters...

Just as he stepped within twenty meters, an even more terrifying surge of will swept over him, freezing Gu Ding's figure in place. (To be continued~^~)